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How many remember the very first detector you started the hobby with and how long ago ??

Relco - 1968
 
In 1969 when I was 13 years old when I got my first ever metal detector. I got it for Christmas, an Army Surplus mind sweeper, with the huge wooden paddle. This was the same type of detector that Mr. Tom Dickey, a renowned relic hunter from Georgia used. He found quite an arsenal of CW artillery shells with it. I found my first ever relic with this, a shell frag from a Hotchkiss artillery shell and began my interest in relic hunting. This mine sweeper was a beast and weighed about as much as I did at the time. Lol
 
Most of us started in this hobby when we were kids or young adults
30, 40, 50 years later we still at it, sure a lot of us had family, work & life that got in the way, but we all come back to detecting.

Interestingly, i was very interested in metal detecting as a child and everything that went along with it. i was also interested in astronomy and many other things as well. Unfortunately, we were very poor and I knew that my parents couldn't afford to by the things to support my interests. however I was able to get a telescope from Santa some years later. :D it was well after i became an adult, pursued an education and raised a couple of kids that i made the circle back to my passion for metal detecting and that persuit of the treasures that goes along with the hobby. o_O

GB, HH
F5
 
I started with a BH platinum and still use it also here a xp deus 1 I have been thinking of getting a legend and selling one of the others not sure yet.
 
Detex Deluxe, 1966, drifted uncontrollably, went to a Garrett Playmate, then to White's Goldmaster 65 BFO, then to White's 66 TR, and on and on.
I think you're the first to mention using a D Tex detector way back when... I seen them advertised in my first treasure book about "coin shooting " back in 1969 1970.. Of course my parents thought was the dumbness thing to want and took another 30 yrs to finally get one.
 
My 1st was a kit I got for Christmas in 1974. I learned 2 things from it. 1- I didn’t have a clue how to properly solder a component to a circuit board, and 2- there wasn’t a pirates chest buried in my grandfather’s yard in Biscayne Park. At least not one that I could find.
 

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Started way back in 1970's with a Singer Metrotech BFO detector.
Back then silver was easy to find just about anywhere and nobody hunted the shallow water.

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Browsing through my favorite sporting goods store in the mid 70's. Came across a White's Coinmaster (with the wonderous 10 Turn Discriminator) that had been returned and marked down 80%. Being young and single, "Self", I said, "You've spent $20 on worse things. Let's try this out." Grabbed a handful of fresh AA's and my old headphones and headed for a beach about 20 minutes out of town. Got there just after supper and the Concessions were closed and the beach pretty much empty. Found enough coin to say I can stop for coffee on the way home, now let's get serious with finding treasure. Screwed down the headphones real tight and cranked up the volume to 12. Not going to miss a signal now. Working up to the boardwalk and suddenly sounded like the coil burst into flame and the headphones did a cartoon "STEAM BLOWING OUT THE EARS". After I managed to refocus my eyes I looked down to see what the coil had passed over. About 2" into the sand some kid had "parked" 30 Dinky Toy cars in his own parking lot, 5 rows by 6 across. It was like passing the coil over a solid steel plate. Once I stopped laughing, I decided I didn't need to restart my toy car collection. That and the fact that I had neglected to bring any type of bag large enough to carry them in, so I carefully covered them again for some other kid to find. But I was already hooked. Almost 50 years and a few more detector upgrades later, I still wonder about the collector value I unwittingly left behind...
 
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